Rise of the Espers
by Soul of Crimson
Summary: Two years after the events of FFXII, the 13 espers were laid to rest. However, a group called the 13th Legion has released them and plans to use them for world destruction. A young man is tasked with recovering the espers and save the world before it's too late. A lot of OCS will be in this story.
1. Beginning of a Legend

_**This is my first fanfic so I'm excited to get this story out. Expect this to be a long story, unless I change my mind. Anyways, without further delay, let's get this story started. I hope you enjoy it! I do not own Final Fantasy XII or any of its characters within this story. I do own the original characters I created for this story however. The story will be separated into acts so hopefully you guys enjoy it. This is the start of Act I.**_

_Long ago, before man advanced its technology beyond anything ever imagined, the Occuria, gods of Ivalice controlled the course of history as they deemed fit and ruled over the land. To further their control, they created 13 scions to govern over the world in their place and guide mankind as well as judge them for their crimes. Over time, the scions grew tired of their creator's tyranny and decided to rebel against them with Ultima, the High Seraph as the mastermind behind the plot. However, in the end, their rebellion failed and they were sealed away as punishment until someone strong enough could release them and control their power. Centuries later, a group of six individuals released their powers and used them to release Ivalice from the tyrannous grip of the Occuria. Afterwards, the espers were once again sealed into a safeguarded temple until they were needed again. Unbeknownst to anyone, a greater threat than anyone ever imagined was about to be revealed, and a new legend would be forged into the annuals of history. This is that story…_

_~~~~~Unknown Forest_

In the depths of the forest, a young man in his early twenties with spiky short silver hair, brown eyes, and a blue outfit was walking, lost in thought.

'What did master mean about me coming out here to tame my powers? Does it have anything to do with the last training session?'

He thought about it and remembered that he was more aggressive than usual in that session. It slightly frightened him that he would attack anyone out of pure aggression.

'That might be true, but it's not like I would…'

Almost abruptly, the man heard an explosion to the north that interrupted his thoughts.

"What's that explosion? It's coming from the north which means…. Oh no, the master!"

The man rushed off to the north as quickly as possible to investigate.

_~~~~~Temple of the Espers_

After 15 minutes, he arrived at the entrance to the temple and found part of the place trashed and parts of rubble all over the place. He looked around for his master and spotted him lying unconscious at the top of the stairs.

"Master Philos!" He rushed to his master's side and tried to shake him out of his unconscious state.

"Master, wake up!"

His master slowly started to come to and sat up before looking around. He was slightly old looking with short white hair and brown eyes.

"Neo, when did you get here?" Philos asked.

"I just arrived to find you unconscious and the temple trashed as well," He replied.

"I see." Philos stood to his feet and had a grim look on his face as he dusted off his brown robe.

"This doesn't come without repercussions however. We have a dire situation on our hands now."

"And what is this dire situation you speak of master?" Neo asked worriedly.

"The 13 espers, which I was tasked to guard, have been stolen from this temple."

Neo was shocked. "The espers? I thought they were just a myth. Why didn't you tell me before master?"

"There was no need until now since it was my task alone to guard them," He explained.

"Maybe so, but I could've been here to help when they came!" Neo replied eagerly.

"No, you probably would've died had you been here and then where would we be?"

Neo looked at his master questionably. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean," Philos started to explain, "That you should be the one who retrieves the stolen espers."

"You want me to do it?" Neo asked. "Are you sure about this?"

"Yes," Philos replied confidently. "I believe you are ready for this. This will be your trial to prove how much you learned over these past ten years."

"I see. Is there anything I should know about these espers?"

Philo began to explain, "There are thirteen espers who lived in ancient times who at some point decided to rebel against their creators. However, they failed and were sealed away as their punishment until 6 people two years ago used their powers to save Dalmasca from Archadia's invasion."

"From Vayne Solidor you mean," Neo implied.

"Yes. Now, one year after those events, I was entrusted with guarding the espers and preventing them from falling into the wrong hands. However, a powerful group has stolen them from their resting place."

"Do we know who is behind this?" Neo asked?

"They call themselves the 13th Legion and as you can surmise, there are 13 members who each took one of the 13 espers." Philos explained. "What they intend to do with the espers, I do not know for sure."

"Tell me the names of these espers."

"As I stated before, there are thirteen espers, Belias, the Gigas, Mateus, the Corrupt, Shemhazai, the Whisperer, Famfrit, the Darkening Cloud, Adremmelech, the Wroth, Hashmal, Bringer of Order, Chaos, Walker of the Wheel, Cuchulainn, the Impure, Zalera, the Death Seraph, Zeromus, the Condemner, Exodus, the Judge-Sal, Ultima, the High Seraph, and the strongest, Zodiark, the Keeper of Precepts. I have not seen them for myself, but I know how powerful they are, so if you encounter one of these beasts, never let down your guard."

"I understand master. Where do you think I should start searching?" Neo asked, eager to begin his newly appointed task.

"You should begin investigating in Rabanastre to the east of here. However, it's too far to get there in time. I will teleport you there, but I cannot accompany you. I must stay here in case they return. This is your task to carry out," Philos stated.

"Right, I'm ready to go now."

Philos halted his apprentice for a moment. "Not yet. I must warn you that your powers aren't yet fully mastered, so be careful not to lose control, otherwise it could bear great consequences," He warned.

"Ok, I'll be careful. Is it time?"

"Yes, give me one moment."

Philos extended his hands and gathered spirit energy, then materialized a portal in front of him.

"I won't let you down master," Neo promised before stepping into the portal and disappearing.

Moments afterward, the portal disappeared and left Philos in thought.

'I hope you're truly ready for what lies ahead Neo.'

**I know the first chapter isn't that long, but they will get longer and more exciting. Please R&R!**


	2. The 13th Legion

Chapter 2: The 13th Legion

_~~~~~Outside of Rabanastre's Gates_

Neo arrived a short distance outside of Rabanastre and stared at the majestic city for a few moments. Even though he had visited it multiple times, it still amazed him to see the look of it from outside. After a few minutes, he arrived at the outer gates and proceeded inside. The city felt different especially with the presence of the Empire thinning every day.

'Now, where should I start asking around? Hmm, maybe I should go to the Sandsea tavern first.'

Neo headed to the tavern and started to investigate. Unfortunately, no one knew about the Legion, so he headed around the entire city to ask around. He still had no luck finding out about the Legion and was frustrated that his search apparently came to a dead-end until he noticed several people heading to the city center and overheard a bangaa and a man talking.

"Just who are those people?"

"I don't know, but apparently they're up to no good, that's for sure."

Neo walked over to the two to find out more. "What's this about exactly?"

"Well, just a few minutes ago, 13 people arrived and started causing a disturbance and it has everyone on edge," The man replied.

"Where are they now?"

"They headed to the city center," The bangaa exclaimed. "I tell ya, they're bad news, ya might want to stay away from there."

"13 people, it must be the Legion!" Neo rushed off to the city center. "Thanks for the help!"

"He's crazy I tell ya, diving into danger like that," The bangaa remarked.

_~~~~~City Center_

As he arrived Neo saw a large crowd gathered around a building with 13 people standing on top of it. Most of the people gathered were shouting at them.

"Hey, who do you think you are?!"

"Get out of our city; we don't need any trouble from you!"

"How do you justify this you sickos?!"

Neo attempted to work his way through the large crowd until he reached the front.

"Hey, are you guys the Legion I've heard about?"

A person with a silver haired look with a single bang hanging from his head, brown eyes and a black outfit along with a black jacket stepped in front of the other 12 people. To Neo, he was apparently the leader.

"Yes," He replied. "We are the 13th Legion."

Suddenly, Neo began to feel woozy and held his head. As he did, he had a vision of what looked like a silver haired boy with short spiky hair and another boy with silver short hair playing together.

'_Come on, you'll never catch me if you're that slow!'_

'_Hey, no fair! You didn't give me a head start!'_

'_Try to keep up with me slowpoke!'_

'_I'll catch you today, just watch me!'_

Neo got ahold of himself after a moment and snapped back into reality.

'What was that? Some kind of vision?'

The silver haired man took a close look at Neo and pondered about him.

'Hmm, he looks like him, but could it actually be?'

"You stole the 13 espers from my master; return them now!" Neo demanded as he took up a battle ready stance.

"So you are Philo's apprentice. I'll tell you now that he has sent you on a fool's errand. Plus, you're not in a position to be making demands from us."

"What exactly do you want with them?"

"To remake the world into the utopia I desire. To do that, all other life on this planet must obey my will or be destroyed."

"I won't let you do that; I'll settle this here and now!"

"Oh please, this is no proper place for a battle. Plus, if you're so focused on protecting these people, why fight here?"

Neo slightly looked back and realized the man spoke the truth. He couldn't risk starting a battle here if he wanted to protect the people. Shortly, the royal guard of the city rushed in and aimed their weapons at the group of 13.

"Surrender now or we will open fire! This is your only warning!" The captain of the guard spoke.

The group just stood silently, not faltering in the face of several trained weapons aimed at them.

"You had your chance! Open fire men!" The guards shot several rounds at the group, but the leader of the 13 raised one hand up and the bullets were blocked by an invisible force.

"Useless! Now do you see what you're up against?" He pointed at Neo before speaking, "If you still wish to fight, then come and seek us out. We have other matters to attend to, but your time will come soon enough. Until then, farewell!"

"Wait, come back here!" It was too late however as the 13 members all scattered in different directions, disappearing from the scene quickly.

"Damn, how am I supposed to find them now?" Neo walked away from the scene, but a few minutes later, an orange spiked haired man with hazel eyes, wearing a light combat outfit appeared before him.

"Hey, who are you?"

"Well if you must know, my name is Blaze and I'm one of the members of the 13th Legion," The man replied.

"You? Well at least I don't have to go to the trouble of looking for you. Now I can settle this!"

"Are you sure you want to fight me here? Might be dangerous for all these people around."

Neo growled in frustration, but knew he was right. "Fine, then why are you here?"

Blaze pointed to a mountain in the west. "You see that mountain there? If you truly want to face me, meet me there in the center and I'll gladly accept your challenge."

"Fine," Neo agreed. "I'll do whatever it takes to beat you."

"Humph. You seem to have the wrong impression about us. Why don't I remind you how tough we really are? You may be stronger than an average human, but so are we. Even more so with the espers on our side. You and those other people witnessed our little demonstration, but that was just a small taste of our power."

"Maybe so, but still I won't let that deter me."

"Impressive. I admire your determination. If you're really set on defeating me, then come to the west and face me. There we'll see if your power is as strong as your resolve. Until then!" Moments after, Blaze sped off to the west towards the mountain until he was out of sight.

'He may be strong, but I have to beat him and the rest of the legion, otherwise the world is doomed. I won't lose, no matter what!'

In a positive mindset, Neo set off towards the west to defeat Blaze.

_~~~~~Outside Rabanastre's West Gate_

As he set off towards the Westersand of the Dalmascan desert, Neo was stopped by a black hooded man who stepped in front of him.

"Hey, out of the way, I don't have time for this, unless you're one of the Legion's members?!"

"Relax, I'm not one of them, but perhaps I can help you out in your journey."

Neo was skeptical at first about trusting this guy. "Really? Just who are you and how can you help?"

"I can help you get to your destination quickly if you'd like. As for my identity, I can't tell you."

Neo was starting to become distrustful of him. "Why not?"

"I have my own reasons for that, as you have yours for wanting to stop the Legion."

"Do you know who they are?"

"No, but I know how powerful they are. You're going to need all the help you can get."

"I see. Well how do you intend on getting me there quickly?"

The man walked toward Neo and pulled out a small crystal that glowed in his hand.

"This crystal can teleport you just about anywhere if you wish it."

"Really? But why are you giving me this if it's so powerful?"

"As I said before, you're going to need all the help you can get. Plus, its use is limited."

The man pointed to an orange crystal nearby. "Do you see that? This crystal was crafted from one of those so it has the same power," He explained. "Unlike that crystal however, it doesn't heal you and the number of times it can be used is limited to the amount of spirit energy the wielder possesses. Therefore, a normal person would only be able to use it once or twice before recharging it. In your case, you could probably use it about 4 to 5 times since your energy is higher than an average person's."

"I see, but how do I recharge it?"

"Just take it near one of the orange crystals located around Ivalice to do so. Blue crystals won't recharge them, just remember that."

"Alright I got it. But why would you want to help me out?"

"Let's just say I want you to succeed in your mission as much as you do. Anyways, I must go now, but we will meet again soon enough." As the man walked away from Neo, he disappeared into thin air.

"He's gone!" Neo was slightly shocked for a moment before questioning his identity. "Well, whoever he was, I don't have time to figure it out now. I have to stop Blaze!"

At that, Neo held the crystal in his hand and concentrated his thoughts on the mountain in the west. Moments later, he disappeared. The fight for the world was about to begin…


	3. Burning Desire of a Warrior

~~~~~_Dalmasca Westersand_

The desert sands were scorching and relentless as they always were. However, this was but a small obstacle in Neo's path to find Blaze. The volcanic mountain was before him and Blaze was surely waiting inside for him. After a few moments, Neo started climbing up the mountain to the top. Surprisingly, it only took him about 10 minutes to reach the top. Momentarily, he started climbing down the inside, being cautious not to slip into the magma below. Shortly, he found a ledge to drop down to and proceeded through the entrance, downward to the center of the mountain.

As he proceeded further into the core of the mountain, Neo could feel the heat intensifying around him. It was a daunting obstacle for sure, but he pressed farther on down the path. As he continued, three fire fiends blocked his path, wanting to make a meal out of the foolish intruder that was trespassing on their grounds.

'I don't have time for this.' Neo immediately sprang into action and slew the three fiends with little effort before moving on. More fiends appeared before him the further he went; however, he managed to slay them all easily.

Finally, Neo arrived at the core of the mountain where Blaze was supposedly waiting. The heat was at its strongest here along with random pillars of magma rising up every minute. The whole volcano looked unstable. Still, Neo could not turn back now as he had come this far.

"So, you really came after all."

Neo looked around to see where the voice was coming from, and then looked upwards. Blaze was standing above him on a stone pillar. Moments later, he jumped off and landed in front of Neo.

"To be honest, I thought you would've stayed away. However it seems you have some resolve after all."

"I want to know why you're doing this." Neo demanded. "What's the point of trying to destroy this world? What will you gain out of it?"

"The reason is simple; we want to bring balance to this corrupt world of ours."

"People like you can't bring balance to this world by destroying it."

"Do you seriously think that the world we live in is just? People can be used and thrown away with only a single thought." Blaze started to pace around. "Let me tell you a story. I was a well-known warrior before. Everyone praised me for my ferocity in battle and my enemies feared me as well. However, over time, even my comrades and superiors began to fear my capabilities and tried to deter me from battle. After the wars ended, I continued to fight any other resistances that would oppose my vassal. Soon after, I was sent on a lone mission to eliminate a target that was slaughtering our people one by one. What I didn't expect was that it was all engineered to eliminate me. I was facing down several highly trained soldiers and thought I would die. I fought off as many as I could, but they overpowered me in the end and left me for dead. I survived though and barely managed to crawl my way to a desert camp. I managed to heal my wounds, but my faith in this war-torn world was shattered and replaced with a desire to change it. Not long after, I was found by our leader, Eclipse and invited to join his crusade to create a utopia. The rest is history."

Neo was moved by his story, but still remained determined in his mission. "I'm sorry that you suffered so much, but you can't expect me to stand by and let you do as you please. Do you really think that what you're doing is right?"

"It doesn't matter if you think our ideals are wrong or not. There is corruption infecting this world and we have the power to change it. The people who are just will live on, while the unjust will face their deserved judgment at our hands."

"You're insane! I can't let you go through with this! I'll stop you here and now!"

Blaze put a hand on the sword on his back. "You really think you can? We'll see if there is iron in your words!"

Blaze drew his sword and charged at Neo. Neo reached his hand out and materialized a sword that looked almost like air, but surging with light grey energy.

'What? Impossible!'

Neo parried his blow and attempted to counterattack. However, Blaze jumped back before the blade hit him.

"How is it that you have that power? Tell me!" Blaze demanded.

"Who knows? Even I'm not sure about that. I've had this power for as long as I can remember. How do you know about it?" Neo questioned.

"Humph, it doesn't matter. It still won't change the outcome of this battle. I'll just have to spice things up then! Ready?"

Blaze assumed a battle stance and moments later, a surge of orange energy surrounded him.

'His spirit energy is rising rapidly! This won't be easy…'

Seconds later, Blaze charged at Neo even faster than before. Neo barely managed to block the strike, and then tried to locate his opponent. Blaze appeared from behind and attacked Neo with a vicious flurry of strikes. Neo kept blocking, but the speed of the strikes were difficult to anticipate and Neo suffered a single blow across his chest that left a rip in his outfit and a small wound.

"Not bad, but how's this?"

Blaze jumped up on the pillar and summoned several fireballs, then directed them towards Neo. He managed to dodge most of them, but a few managed to hit him and sent him crashing into a nearby pillar.

"Is that all you've got?" Blaze started walking towards the rubble. "I was expecting more from you. Oh well, best not drag this out then!" Blaze started charging, but stopped when he saw a glowing light from within.

"Spirit Cannon!"

A large ball of spirit energy sped head on towards Blaze; he stood his ground though and took it head on, struggling against it for a few moments before managing to slice the energy ball in half.

As the smoke cleared, Neo stood with a determined look on his face. Even though the battle would be tough, he wouldn't give up.

"That's impressive strength you have. I may have underestimated you. In fact your power is similar to that of…"

Neo wondered who he was talking about, but decided it wasn't important at the moment.

"Well, it looks like I may have to use my full power after all. This will be a glorious battle indeed!" Blaze seemed ecstatic as he reveled in the feeling of fighting a strong opponent.

"Now, let's continue. I'll enjoy taking you down for good!"

"Fine, let's do this. I'll stop you no matter what!"

**Another chapter done! Please R&R. Until the next chapter!**


	4. Belias, the Gigas

~~~~~_Dalmasca Westersand (Volcano Mountain)_

In the scorching depths of the treacherous volcano, sparks flew as Neo and Blaze continued their bout. Both warriors continued to strike several blows at each other, but were still evenly matched. In the heat of the fight, Blaze jumped several meters back from his opponent. Neo wondered what he was up to.

"What's wrong? You backed away quite quickly."

"Oh there's nothing wrong," Blaze reassured. "I just needed a break in the action. You and I are on equal levels of power, at least for the moment."

"So you're going to try and gather more energy is that it?" At that moment, Neo charged his opponent. "Too bad, I won't allow it!" As he closed in on his opponent, Neo was forcibly stopped by Blaze's spirit energy instantly rising. As his energy rose, Blaze's sword started to glow bright orange.

"Unfortunately, you don't have a choice in the matter. Now, let's see if you can survive this!"

Blaze swung his sword and it sent out a shockwave of fire at high speed towards Neo. He managed to dodge it, but at that moment, Blaze appeared behind him and fired another shockwave at Neo. He quickly turned behind him and struggled to ward off the attack. After a few moments, Neo split the attack in half; however, Blaze again surprised him by appearing above him in the air and firing another shockwave at Neo. The attack exploded on impact and left the affected area aflame. Blaze landed a far distance from the flames.

"Too bad you didn't think there was more to my attack than that. If you had, you would've been able to survive. Oh well, I guess you weren't as strong as you thought." As Blaze walked towards the flames, he noticed that there was a figure inside. Seconds later, the figure jumped out and revealed itself to be Neo. Blaze was taken aback at how he survived the attack.

"How did you survive that? That was my best technique!"

"I admit, your attack was powerful and it caught me off guard. It was thanks to a certain technique that I survived. If I didn't, I'd be incinerated by now."

Blaze glared at him questionably. "A certain technique? What is it?"

"If I focus my spirit energy around me, I can create a shield that protects me from various types of damage. I call it my Aura Shield."

"I see. You're just full of surprises and much stronger than I originally thought possible." Blaze extinguished the flames lingering from his attack with a wave of his sword and then jumped far away from Neo, close to the edge of the rocky arena overlooking the magma. "I'm done underestimating you. So I intend to crush you with all the power I have!"

Neo's eyes widened with what Blaze said to him and realized what was next.

"You don't mean, you're going to call that?!"

Blaze gave off a small smirk. "Exactly! Now witness the power of the legendary espers for yourself!" Blaze impaled his sword into the ground and closed his eyes. As he did, his spirit energy started to rise again. "Mighty gigas Belias, from the depths of hell, I summon thee!" An orange glyph appeared around Blaze and a large figure materialized out of the glyph, followed by a blinding flash of light which Neo shielded his eyes from. When the light faded, Neo looked in awe at the creature standing behind Blaze. It was an orange man looking creature with hoofs, four arms, orange fur, two metal objects which appeared to be masks covering its face and partly covering its chest, and a large, orange spear which it carried in its right hand.

"This is the esper Belias?! Its power is incredible!" Neo was barely able to retain his composure in front of this legendary creature that was giving off an incredible amount of spirit energy.

"Yes, this is it, Belias the Gigas, a fire esper. Its power is fitting for me since I also specialize in controlling the element if fire. You may have fared well against me alone, but I wonder how you will do against both of us at once!" Blaze pulled his sword out from the ground and resumed his battle stance. "Now then, let's continue, I'm looking forward to test this esper's powers against you, so don't disappoint me, Neo!"

~~~~~_Legion's Headquarters (Location Unknown)_

In the dark hallways of the corridor, a young woman with short, blue hair who was wearing a ninja outfit walked towards two large doors and opened them. The room inside was similar to a throne room and at the back, the leader of the Legion; Eclipse was sitting on the throne. The woman walked towards him and kneeled before him.

"Sir, I request to go and make sure Blaze finishes his job."

"For what reason?" He asked. "You don't trust him?"

"It's not that sir, but…"

"Relax Ice, you may state your opinion freely since we are all agreed to work together for our common goal as an organization should."

"Very well, there's a small chance he may fail and I want to be able to clean up his mess if need be."

Eclipse pondered her statement for a moment before deciding. "Alright, go if you wish to. Now I'm expecting someone else, you may leave."

"Sir!" Ice bowed her head quickly before standing up and leaving. On her way out, two women passed her by; one had medium long silver hair, blue eyes and a grey outfit and looked to be in her early twenties, the other had silver hair and blue eyes as well, but her hair was longer and she wore a bright yellow outfit and she looked to be an adolescent.

"Spirit, Crystal, what have you two learned from your recon?" Eclipse asked the two girls.

"The place is fairly guarded, but it's still nothing we can't handle," Spirit stated. "They are still in the process of repairing the ship and are almost finished, but they shouldn't be going anywhere for the time being."

"Good, then I'll be sending you out immediately."

"Just the two of us?"

"No. I have no doubts in your abilities, but taking over Sky Fortress Bahamut will be much faster if it's more than just the two of you, so I'm sending along Sage, Quake, and Magna to accompany you for this mission."

Just then, three people walked in behind the girls. One was a tall muscular tan warrior who wore a brown combat outfit with his chest muscles showing and a large sword brandished on his back and looked to be in his mid-twenties. The second wore a dark grey ruffian outfit with a cowboy hat and had black hair with a patch over his left eye and looked a bit younger than the tall man. The last looked older than both of them, seemingly in his early forties. He wore a dark robe and had dark grey hair.

"I am sending the five of you on a mission to take Sky Fortress Bahamut from the Archadian army. Our intel states that they are still making repairs and are almost finished, so the time is ripe to strike and implement the next stage of our plan. Spirit, I'm putting you in charge of this mission, you may leave when you are ready."

"Yes, right away." She bowed quickly.

The youngest member, Crystal had a slight look of uncertainty in her eyes. Eclipse took notice of this, got up and walked towards her. He put his hands on her shoulders and looked at her.

"I know it's a lot to do, but what we are doing is for our common goal. There's no need to worry. You'll be fine, I promise."

Crystal nodded in reassurance. "Yes, I know. You don't need to worry about me. I'll be ok."

Eclipse walked back to his throne and sat back down. "Alright, briefing is over. Now go!"

"Yes sir!" They all replied.

~~~~~_Dalamasca Westersand (Volcano Mountain)_

Neo prepared to face down both Blaze and Belias, but it would prove to be anything but an easy task.

'Damn it, this creature's spirit energy is insane! How can I stop it?'

Before he could finish his thoughts, Belias charged at Neo and he jumped over the Gigas and charged some spirit energy in his right hand into a ball.

"Take this!" Neo threw the energy ball at Belias and it hit its target, enveloping it in an explosion. Several moments later, the smoke cleared and Belias emerged, unscathed.

'No way! Not even a single scratch?!'

Belias raised its upper hands and charged a ball of fire, then sent it towards Neo at high speed. He barely dodged the explosion, before having to dodge more flares shot by Belias around the arena. When it looked like the esper was finished, Neo prepared another assault; however, Blaze was able to slash Neo from behind. He jumped away from his opponents to regain his bearings, but his vision started to blur slightly and he began to pant heavily.

"Don't forget, I'm your opponent as well!"

'Darn, I'm getting worn out. Isn't there anything I can do?'

Blaze stepped forward and clapped a few times. "I must say I'm impressed that you lasted this long against an esper. A normal human would've died by now no doubt, but you're not normal are you? Still, you won't last much longer at this rate, so I think it's time to end this demonstration."

Blaze jumped far into the air while Belias charged an abundance of spirit energy. Moments later, a glyph appeared behind it and discharged a great amount of fire which headed towards Neo. He braced for the attack which struck moments later, enveloping him. A minute later, Neo was revealed to be standing, but severely injured as most of his outfit was scorched from the attack.

"So, you used your Aura Shield to block the attack." Blaze deduced. "Although it seems your shield didn't absorb the entire impact as I can tell."

Neo still stood, but he wasn't moving at all. He wasn't even panting for breath.

"Are you even listening to what I'm saying to you?" Blaze questioned. Still he got no response from his opponent. "Unbelievable, he's barely conscious and he still has the will to stand up? That is the will of a true warrior so he should die like one."

Blaze charged at the still immobile Neo. "Time to die, Neo!" Almost out of nowhere, a great surge of spirit energy rose out of Neo which prompted Blaze to jump back cautiously.

"No, Impossible!" Blaze stood staring at the newly energized Neo as he rose up and faced his opponent.

"That attack should've finished you off! So how can you still have this much power left? Just what the hell are you?!" Blaze looked in horror for several moments at Neo's spirit energy still rising rapidly before he finally spoke.

"I'm the one who's going to kill you," He stated as his eyes changed from brown to an icy blue.

**It's been more than a month since the last chapter was posted. Sorry but I've been busy for a while in real life. Good news though, the next few chapters will be out fairly quickly so look forward to that. Please R&R, it really helps me, thanks!**


	5. Awakening

_~~~~~Dalmasca Westersand (Volcano Mountain)_

Blaze looked at Neo for a few more moments, and then smirked.

"Now I see, your power is similar to one I faced before. However, yours is weaker so you still won't be able to beat me."

Neo was unresponsive until he gave a small smirk.

"Now that's interesting, a mere human like you has witnessed my power and still has the nerve to think he can defeat me? Such nonsense!"

"Really? It seems your arrogance has clouded your judgment. Don't forget you're up against me as well as my esper. You should realize you have no chance of winning." Blaze then took up his battle stance and Belias did the same.

"You really think so? That pathetic creature as well as your power is useless against me! I'll force you to realize your futility by destroying it as well as you!"

"Let's see you try it! Belias incinerate him!" Belias charged up an attack with its hands and surrounded Neo with its energy. Moments later, it detonated into flames. Blaze smirked, but soon was shocked as Neo was standing behind him.

"What?! How did you dodge that attack?" Blaze stood still for a moment, and then smiled slightly.

"So your speed has increased as well. However, you're still not powerful enough to defeat me!"

Neo lunged his sword at Blaze who was barely able to keep track of it, receiving a scrape on his right shoulder.

"I thought I told you not to get so cocky, otherwise you'll die easily."

Blaze jumped back and then focused his own spirit energy into a red like aura.

"You may have dodged that attack, but let's see you stop this!" Blaze formed two red fireballs in his hands and shot multiple shots around Neo, surrounding him.

"Let's see you escape this one! Even if you dodge these, I can still direct them towards you!" Neo still stood calmly, surrounded by fireballs.

"Now, take this!" Blaze moved his hands forward and the fireballs sped toward Neo. However, Neo cut the fireballs with his sword at intense speed that they turned into ash. Afterwards, he gave off a small grin.

"No need for me to dodge them if they're so weak."

Blaze stood in awe at his failed attack.

"That's not possible! How can he be this strong!?" Then, Neo disappeared from Blaze's eyesight and Blaze felt a sword slash his body from behind. He quickly distanced himself from his opponent, but kneeled to the ground in pain.

'He's strong, I don't know if I can last much longer at this rate. I'll have to finish this with one final blow!'

Blaze stood with his red aura surrounding his body.

"I've underestimated you severely, but no more. I'll destroy you with my true power!" Belias immediately jumped to Blaze's side.

"Time to end this now!"

Belias focused his own spirit power and it appeared as a giant orange like flame surrounding him. Blaze jumped into the air with Belias following suit behind him. Neo's eyes widened with slight shock. Belias focused Blaze's and its own spirit energy into the giant spear and threw it to the ground.

"Hellfire attack!"

Belias' giant spear exploded into a massive wall of flames that engulfed the entire volcano, causing it to erupt massive flames which tore a hole into the top of the roof of the volcano. After the explosion, the inside volcano was completely scorched. Blaze and Belias landed on the ground moments later. Silence filled the volcano until Blaze began to laugh.

"Looks like it's over isn't it?! I told you that you were no match for me!" Blaze's eyes then widened as he saw Belias fall to the ground.

"No, Impossible!" Belias had been slashed in several places and then disappeared moments later in a flash of light. Neo stood right before Blaze as he looked on in shock.

"How were you able to survive that?! I put all of our power into that attack! You shouldn't be standing!" Blaze's eyes then widened.

"Unless..." Blaze thinks back to when Neo used his Aura Shield to defend against Belia's Firaja attack.

"I see. So all of your techniques are more powerful in that form?"

"That's right," Neo replied. "So, is that all you've got? If so, now it's my turn!" Blaze surged with the remainder of his spirit energy in response.

"Don't underestimate me just because my esper's gone!" Blaze charged at Neo with great speed, but Neo blocked his sword much to Blaze's amazement. Moments later, Neo cut through Blaze's sword and severely wounded him. Blaze fell to the ground on his knees as blood slowly poured from his body and his spirit energy vanished. Neo raised his sword above Blaze's throat and prepared to finish him off.

"Fine then, go on and finish it." Blaze closed his eyes, but opened them again momentarily as he saw Neo standing with a blank expression on his face.

'Hey, what the hell is this? Give me back my body now!'

"Begone fool! This doesn't concern you!"

'The hell it doesn't!'

"You can't stop me, now disappear!" Neo raised his sword to cut down his opponent, but before it could hit its mark, Neo had his hand over his head and was emanating a large amount of spirit energy.

'I don't need your help! Now get lost!'

Neo roared in pain until the aura surrounding his body dissipated as he dropped to his knees. Blaze looked at Neo in surprise as he slowly stood.

"Why didn't you finish me when you could?" He asked.

"I wasn't the one fighting you if you can understand that." Neo replied. "I don't know what that being was, but it definitely wasn't me." Blaze stared at Neo, and then closed his eyes.

"Fine. I won't question you about it, but since you defeated me, my esper is yours now." Blaze concentrated his energy until an orange crystal appeared before him. Neo walked towards it and the crystal shattered, revealing a glyph. Neo extended his hand and absorbed it. As he absorbed it, the power of Belias began to surge within him and gave him an incredible sensation.

"Wow, so this is the power of an esper!"

"Yeah. It'll be interesting to see how you use it, especially since you still have twelve more members to defeat."

"I assure you, I'll stop your plans, whatever they are." Neo resolved.

"Humph, we'll see in time."

Suddenly, shards of ice started to rain down on Blaze and Neo; however, they managed to dodge them. Blaze looked up and was surprised to see a blue-haired woman standing on top of a pillar.

"I should've known it was too early to celebrate," Neo remarked.

"Looks as if I made the right call, I knew we couldn't trust you to handle this Blaze," The woman said. She jumped down to face the two. "Oh well. Rest assured I'll clean up your mess and eliminate this nuisance," She stated as she glared at Neo with ice blue eyes.

**Yes, it's been a while. Unfortunately, real life interfered with me again, but I will be posting more often. Please R&R, thanks!**


	6. Pursuit

_~~~~~Dalmasca Westersand (Volcano Mountain)_

The blue-haired woman named Ice was glaring at the two worn out people before her with a cold stare. It was evident her patience was thin.

"Blaze!" She shouted. "What do you think you're doing? Why are you just sitting there?"

"Who are you?" Neo asked.

"I'm Ice, a member of the legion since you must know."

"Why are you here Ice? I didn't ask for your help." Blaze replied.

"Shut up! You weren't able to defeat him and you had the power of an esper. As far as I'm concerned, you're pathetic!" Ice paused for a few seconds.

"You know, I had a feeling that you may have trouble killing him yourself, so I came just in case you failed. I'm glad I did. Now I can finish him off like you were supposed to!" Ice then focused her attention on Neo.

"Now then, let's get this over with. I'll dispose of you here and now!" Ice quickly began her assault on Neo by throwing daggers at him, but frozen at the tip of the blades.

'They're frozen in ice!' Neo jumped to dodge the daggers, but Ice appeared behind him and kicked him out of the air. Neo struggled to get up as Ice walked toward him.

"Is that all you've got? I expected more from you. But then, in your condition, you can't really do much can you?" Neo struggled to look around for any available options to fight her off, but couldn't find any close at hand.

"Alright, it's time to end this!" Ice threw another dagger at Neo, but much faster than before. As Neo braced himself, for a split-second, he heard a voice in his head.

'Neo! Concentrate on where you need to be. Do it now!' Neo focused and suddenly vanished before the dagger hit him.

"What?! Where'd he go?" Ice struggled to sense the spirit energy of Neo, but it had vanished.

"Damn it!" Ice quenched her fist, but she calmed herself.

"Well next time, I'll kill you for sure, and I'll take my time," She vowed. Ice turned to look at Blaze with a cold stare.

"As for you, don't think you're off the hook either. You're going to answer to Eclipse about what happened here. Personally, I'd kill you myself, but you're still essential to our plan."

Blaze gave off a small smirk which Ice didn't notice.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go."

_~~~~~Temple of the Espers _

Philos sat in a meditative state with his eyes closed. Then, he suddenly opened them as Neo materialized in front of him.

"So you've returned." Neo looked around to see he had arrived back at the temple.

"How did I get back here?" He asked.

"I teleported you here when I sensed your power was fading."

"Wait, then you were watching me the whole time?" Neo asked.

"Yes I was. Just in case you needed some assistance. If I had waited a second longer, you would've been dead." Philos stood and faced away from Neo. "Neo, you have taken the first step into retrieving the espers."

"So, should we seal it back into the temple again now?

"No." Philos turned towards Neo again.

"You must begin to master the powers of the espers if you are to stand a chance of retrieving the remaining 12 espers. Belias normally wouldn't be controllable by just any human. However, you have gained an incredible amount of spirit energy during your time of training with me, so it shouldn't be difficult for you, but, it's still no easy task. Belias and the other espers have almost boundless power that can easily destroy the world. You must be cautious when using them."

"I understand."

"Do you?" Philos stared at his apprentice as he noticed a slight change in Neo's facial expression from determination to uncertainty.

"To be honest, you need more training. I would teach you how to fully control the esper you now wield, but as you know, we're short on time. I sense our enemy's power growing by the minute. We must hurry if we want to prevent the legion from carrying out their plans."

"Yeah, I know." Neo then realized he was still worn out from his last battle. "Master, if it's not any trouble, could you heal me?" Neo asked. I'll need to be at full strength to even stand a chance against them."

"Of course. Sit right there, this won't take long." Neo did so and Philos began healing his wounds. After ten minutes, Neo was fully restored.

"Thanks, Master, I should be off then." Neo pulled out the small orange crystal the hooded man gave him. Philos took note of it and was slightly surprised by seeing it. Neo focused his mind, but after a few moments, he realized he was still standing in the same spot.

"What the? Why isn't it working?" Neo tried again to make the crystal work, but to no avail.

"Tell me, where did you get that crystal?" Philos questioned Neo.

"I got it from a man cloaked in a black hooded coat." He replied.

"A black hooded coat? Was he a legion member?"

"He didn't say he was, just that he wanted to help me."

Philos pondered on the subject for a few moments.

'Interesting, I wonder if it could be, but it couldn't…'

"Something wrong master?"

Philos left his thoughts behind for the moment after hearing Neo call him.

"No, it's nothing. I shall ponder more about this, but we have more urgent matters to deal with. I suspect that a power in the area is blocking the power of that crystal."

"Wait, you know about this crystal?"

"I know that it was created as a smaller replica of a teleport crystal. Whoever gave it to you must have worked as a researcher and developer at some point," Philos deduced.

"True, but if something is blocking it from working, we need to find whatever it is and deal with it."

"Yes, but most beings don't possess that kind of power so it'll be something powerful. Stay on your guard," Philos cautioned.

"Right, I'll head to the west first. Hopefully I'll find something there." Neo started to rush off, until he heard his master's voice halting him.

"Wait, Neo! Before you go, I must discuss what happened in your last fight."

Neo turned back around and looked at him with question.

"What about it? All I remember was I fought against Blaze until he summoned his esper, then I was knocked unconscious." Neo explained. "The rest was a blur until I felt like I was in a dark secluded place. I saw myself about to kill Blaze, and then I yelled at myself and came to my senses. It felt like another side of myself, but a much darker side."

Philo's facial expression became grim after hearing Neo's explanation.

"I see. Try to be more careful with your powers in your next battle. I fear this may be a sign of bad omens to come."

"Alright, I'll try my best. I should go now though. I'll be back soon." With that, Neo rushed off towards the west where the wasteland awaited. Philos watched his apprentice disappear from sight while still pondering about Neo's growing powers.

'It's strange, when I was training him, sometimes he would act slightly more aggressive when he was pushed to his limits, but I've never seen him like this until now. Did something happen that triggered a dormant power inside him?'

Philos continued to wonder about it, but soon stopped as he realized someone was watching him from the shadows.

"There's no use hiding, I know you're there. Why don't you come out and show yourself?"

The figure that was hiding in the shadows stepped out and revealed itself behind Philos to be Ice.

At that moment, Philos realized what was going on.

"I see, I should've known you were blocking Neo from using his crystal. You waited until he left so you could pick us off one by one right?"

Ice looked at the old man and smirked.

"That's quite presumptive, but I'm not after you, yet at least. I'm only after your apprentice since he holds something vital to our plans. I'm not the least bit interested in killing you yet."

Philos closed his eyes after hearing her statement.

"Is that right?"

"Yes. I'm not motivated to kill you since we already got what we wanted from you, but if you stood in my way, I would have no choice. Are you going to make me do that?" She questioned.

Ice expected an answer or even a surprise attack, but surprisingly, he didn't say anything or make a move.

"So I take your silence means you won't try to stop me? Good, I'd much rather deal with the task at hand, so goodbye for now."

Ice rushed past Philos towards the wastelands in pursuit of Neo while he just watched her disappear.

'She's quite strong, but also very arrogant and cocky. That will end up being her downfall.'

_~~~~~Wastelands_

As she ran along, Ice recalled her last encounter with Neo and how she let him get away.

'I let him escape once, but I won't allow it to happen again.' She then recalls the meeting that happened at headquarters after Blaze was defeated.

_~~~~~Legion's Headquarters (Location Unknown, Past)_

Ice walks into the throne room with Blaze limping at her side where Eclipse is waiting for them.

"So, you've returned."

Blaze knelt down. "I'm sorry for my failure. I would've beaten him, but some unknown power awakened inside him before I could deal the killing blow. I was careless, forgive me."

Eclipse looked down at the kneeling warrior and pondered to himself for a moment.

"It's nothing to worry about. As far as I'm concerned, you're still a vital part of our plans. However, it is interesting that he's stronger than we originally thought. I may have to initiate phase 2 sooner than I thought."

Ice then stepped forward in front of Eclipse and bowed.

"Please, let me take care of him. I won't fail you. I'll make sure he's dead by the end of the day."

Eclipse thought for a second then made up his mind. "Very well. You may go, but don't underestimate him this time."

"Sir!"

_~~~~~Wastelands (Present)_

Ice dismissed the flashback from her mind and began to focus on catching up to her target.

'You're mine Neo! On my pride as an assassin, I will eliminate you once and for all!'

She then began to run at a lightning fast speed and in the background, the crescent moon began to rise in the night sky.

**Another chapter done! Hope you enjoyed it, please R&R and expect the next one very soon!**

**6/12/13- Chapters 1 & 2 have been slightly edited**


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